Base time: # of minutes per game (G) each player has to complete all of the player's moves

d#

Delay time: # of seconds of delay (d) that elapse before a player's base time begins to elapse, when the player is on move

*

Trophies: top ≈ 25% of players or players with ≈ ≥70% of available points (3.5+/5)

Top Under X

Trophy: top (highest-finishing) player with a published rating under X who does not earn a place trophy (1st, 2nd, etc.) (Unrated players are ineligible for class prizes.)

**

Trophies: top ≈ 35% of teams or teams with ≈ ≥50% of available points (10+/20)—based on top (highest-finishing) 4 players

***

Each section's separate awards ceremony will begin ASAP after its final round has ended.

****

If only 2 players compete in a Parents section, then only their 1st game will be submitted to US Chess for rating; all remaining games will be unrated. Why? If only 2 players compete in a section with multiple games, then the section must be submitted to US Chess for rating as a match that is a separate tournament from the scholastic tournament, rather than as a section that's part of the scholastic tournament—which would be too much administrative work.

Registration Fee for Tournament (extra for US-Chess membership)

To register for this tournament (starting 1 month beforehand), click on Register at bottom of page.

To register for any upcoming tournament run by MD Chess, click on View All Events at bottom of page.

If player's US-Chess membership will be current, then select 1st option for Registration Type: Tournament Registration (player's US-Chess membership will be current / will not have expired).

If player will lack current US-Chess membership, then select 2nd option for Registration Type: Tournament Registration & US-Chess Membership (new or renewal).

Registered Players & Wallcharts

Individuals (Attendees)—includes players registered currently (updated automatically)
After clicking on the link above, click on Attendees beneath a specific scholastic tournament. At the top of the page, enter into the Search bar the player's first or last name (but not both), or the purchaser's first or last name (but not both). Or, at the bottom of the page, change the # of players displayed to All ; sort by clicking on Player's Name, Purchaser's Name, etc.

If a player will lack a current US-Chess membership during the tournament, then select the 2nd option for Registration Type during tournament registration: Tournament Registration & US-Chess Membership (new or renewal). (Until MD Chess processes purchases of US-Chess memberships, a new member's US-Chess ID # will be listed as TBD [To Be Determined ] in the wallcharts listed above. MD Chess might wait until the day of the tournament to process those purchases.)

During the tournament a player who lacks a current US-Chess membership is ineligible to play, will not be paired in any round, & will receive a 0-point bye in all rounds, until the player purchases a US-Chess membership, by filling out MD Chess's US-Chess-membership form in the Tournament Directors' room.

For Which Section Should a Player Register?

Sections are listed primarily in order of rating strength & secondarily in order of grade range.

Players who have never competed in a US-Chess-rated tournament (the vast majority of unrated players) are not eligible for the strongest sections.

A player's eligibility by rating for a section is determined primarily by the player's official/published US-Chess rating during the month in which a tournament will be held. A player's official rating remains the same number throughout a month, because US Chess calculates a player's official rating only once per month. That is, a player's official rating does not change during a month, because a player's official rating throughout a month is what the player’s unofficial/unpublished rating was on the 3rd Wednesday of the previous month. Conversely, a player's unofficial rating can change an unlimited number of times per month, because US Chess calculates a player's new unofficial rating after every tournament in which the player competes—usually only 2 hours after the completed tournament has been submitted for ratings’ calculations. When registering a player for a tournament in month X, apply the player's official rating in month X. When registering a player for a tournament in month X+1, apply the player's unofficial rating on the 3rd Wednesday of month X. Click here for a player's official & unofficial US-Chess ratings.

With regard to a player's official rating, sections have a hard, inflexible ceiling at all US-Chess-rated tournaments, but a marginally flexible floor at MD Chess's scholastic tournaments. So, on the 1 hand, whenever a player's official rating is > a section's ceiling, the player may not play down in the section—even if the player's unofficial rating is ≤ the section's ceiling. So, for example, if a player wants to play in an Under 400 section (which has a ceiling of 399), but the player's official rating is 400+, then the player may not play in the section—even if the player's unofficial rating is 399-. But, on the other hand, if a player's official rating is ≤ 50 points below a section's floor and/or the player's unofficial rating is ≤ 50 points below or ≥ the section's floor, then the player may play up in the section—unless the Chief Tournament Director and/or MD Chess's Scholastic Director were to decide it would not be in the tournament's best interests. So, for example, a player may play up in a 400-799 section, even if the player's official rating is below the section's floor of 400, as long as the player's official rating is 355-399 and/or the player's unofficial rating is 355-799. In short, then, a player's unofficial rating may be used only to play up in a higher section—not to play down in a lower section. (Note that if a player uses the player's unofficial rating to qualify to play up in a section, then that unofficial rating will likely be assigned to the player for pairing order—without notification.)

If an unrated player (that is, a player without an official rating) has an unofficial rating (because the player competed for the first time or completed only 3- games before ratings became official for the month in which the tournament will be run), then the player's most recent unofficial rating might be assigned to the player to determine section eligibility and pairing order—without notification. That is, the unrated player might have to play up in a higher section or down in a lower section, based on the player's unofficial rating.

If a player is registered for a section for which the player is ineligible by rating, then the player will be moved to the lowest section for which the player is eligible—without notification.

Players do not need to bring a clock; however, MD Chess encourages them to bring one. MD Chess recommends the DGT North American digital chess clock ($36). Players may not refuse to play with a clock, if either player brings a clock to the board, or if a tournament director (TD) puts a clock on a game. A game may be started without a clock, if neither player brings a clock to the board.

Food (pizza, candy, soda, etc.) should be available for purchase at the tournament. If there isn't a concession stand on site, then walk 2 minutes south on Roland Avenue to Starbucks Coffehouse or Eddie's Supermarket, which sells deli sandwiches.

Playing at the Tournament

A player who forfeits a game for an illegitimate reason must pay a $20 fine before the player will be permitted to play in a future scholastic or open tournament organized by Maryland Chess or Baltimore Chess. Examples of an illegitimate forfeit include (but are not limited to) the following:

before Round 1 a player fails to withdraw from the tournament properly by emailing MD Chess at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. by 8:30 AM (that is, by at least 1 hour before the scheduled start of Round 1 at 9:30 AM);

after Round 1 a player fails to withdraw from the tournament properly by notifying the BackRoom Tournament Director before the pairings for the next round have been posted.

Why the $20 fine? Because the player will have been paired against an opponent who will have had to wait at the board for the player's base time (25-90 minutes) to expire, before having been declared a forfeit winner. See further :

Players must notate (record moves)—unless they are K-5 players rated under 400 or unrated in the lower section, Under 1000. All K-5 players rated under 400 or unrated in Under 1000 are exempt from the notation requirement. Tournament directors (TDs) will enforce the notation requirement only after a player's complaint that the player's opponent is not notating. Click here to learn how to notate (record chess moves). Notation affords several benefits: it helps to resolve disputes, discourages cheating, & enables players to improve their skills through post-game analysis.

US Chess's National Scholastic Chess Tournament Regulations 2018-2019 (Note that these regulations apply only to the 7+ scholastic tournaments run by US Chess. They do not apply automatically to scholastic tournaments run by MD Chess and are listed here only for purposes of comparison with MD Chess's Scholastic Variations from US Chess's Rules.)

Players, parents, and coaches with questions, concerns, or complaints during the tournament should speak with a tournament director (TD) on the tournament floor or in the TD Room, a back room also known as Chess Control.

MD Chess's Social-Media Profiles

If the tournament were to be rescheduled or cancelled, then MD Chess would contact you (by email and/or text) and post an announcement at the top of this tournament-announcement page. The tournament will proceed as planned, if MD Chess neither contacts you, nor posts an announcement about a rescheduling or cancellation. Please do not contact MD Chess about a site's hypothetical closing because of dangerous weather, etc. A site closing would be announced separately by the public school's city or county administration, the private school, etc. If the tournament were to be rescheduled, then MD Chess would issue a refund, if a player were to withdraw from the rescheduled tournament. If the tournament were to be cancelled, then MD Chess would automatically issue a refund to all players within 1-2 weeks; there would be no need to inform MD Chess of a player's withdrawal from a cancelled tournament.

For more tournament information, email Maryland Chess at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..